Reviewer:

Outstanding basic recipe, with full credit to Maplebird for the original inspiration! Like many others, I took some liberties according to my (and my wife's) taste - and tendency to want to change things 'just cause.' I vertically halved a fairly large squash and microwaved it (high) about 15 min in a half-inch of water - it was easy to scoop out the flesh with a grapefruit spoon. I cubed one Idaho potato and one sweet potato, and parboiled them briefly before adding them to the skillet (olive oil) with the sautéing onion - to which I had added two cloves minced garlic. I omitted the carrot due simply to taste, and added a minced fresh jalapeño (seeded) pepper to the onion/garlic/potatoes mixture. I transferred the sautéed mix and squash to a soup pot, along with about four cups of hot vegetable broth (I'm vegetarian). Brought to a boil with salt, some white pepper, and a shake of red pepper flakes. (Add water/broth as needed to desired consistency.) After about 45 minutes on medium low heat, uncovered, I added half a cup of half-and-half, reduced heat to very low for five minutes, and did not puree. And the required dollop of SC - sour cream - in the bowl...Loved it!

Reviewer:

Made this today and definitely felt that it was bland. I added some garlic powder (would sautée one fresh clove next time), paprika, curry and cayenne pepper.
To those who are considering a fellow reviewed suggestion to use a hand mixer: don't do it! I thought it was a genius idea but even with little soup in a large pot, soup splattered all over me and my stove!! The lid only contained a bit of the mess. I'll definitely use the blender next time.

Reviewer:

I made this last night for dinner. I thought it was a little bland so I added 1/2 tsp garlic, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp allspice and 3/4 cup brown sugar. Even though I added 1/4 brown sugar each time I thought it was too sweet. I will reduce this next time but definitely thought 1/2 cup was not enough. I also added about 1/3 cup 35% M.F. thick cream. It was delicious and I will definitely will make this again. I gave it 5 stars anyway because it's a great starter base!

Reviewer:

I gave this 5 stars for both the basic recipe and the reviewers suggestions. I used all the ingredients EXCEPT the potatoes and butter (don't need the starch and fat; just the flavor). I used a slow cooker to soften the squash (LOW setting for 5 hours, then removed and cooled before removing seeds). I turned up the slow cooker to HIGH and added onion, carrot, celery, low sodium chicken stock, 1 clove of garlic and 1/8 tsp. of curry (skipped the sauté step altogether), and boiled the stock for 3 hours. I returned the squash to the slow cooker and pureed the entire mixture for about 2 minutes. Tasted great despite the absence of potato and butter.

Reviewer:

Finding a recipe without gluten and dairy is great. This is the first time I have cooked with butternut squash, and I really enjoyed the taste of this recipe. Others say it is bland, but it suits me perfectly.

Reviewer:

This was simple and delicious! It's a nice basic recipe that can be easily personalized. I added a teaspoon of allspice, three cloves of garlic, and topped it with parmasean. I might try a dash of curry next time like one person suggested. I omitted nothing.

Reviewer:

This soup was so delicious!! The only changes I made were that I used a humongous butternut squash (instead of medium) and chicken broth, instead of stock since that's what I had on hand. It was so creamy and hearty. My husband, 4 year old, and I just loved it!